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Consumers and businesses are increasingly paying attention to how our actions impact the planet. There is a plethora of opinions and many arguments that reflect a diversity of viewpoints on the topic. Certainly, the issue of sustainability has sparked many a heated debate. However, an increasing number of purchase decisions are influenced by how a given brand, product, or service impacts our planet. So it is not a surprise that, on Earth Day, companies want to roll out their “green” credentials.
This raises an important question: Does the concern over sustainability have a material effect on how consumers or businesses engage with a brand?
Let’s look at some data to help answer this question. Keypoint Intelligence conducted a survey of small to large enterprises in 2021 and found that a majority of companies in both Western Europe and the United States have formal sustainability policies. Approximately another quarter have informal policies. This indicates that many companies today are taking the issue of sustainability seriously and it is affecting the purchasing process.
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Moreover, they expect their printing equipment suppliers to follow suit. Another solid majority of companies, when making purchases of printing equipment, proactively look for supplier practices regarding cartridge return programs and the use of recycled materials within manufacturing supply chains. These are just a few data points from the study that illustrate many companies now look to businesses within the printing industry to prove their sustainability initiatives. Moreover, it provides further evidence that if businesses want to maintain and increase market share, they must take this shift in customer demand seriously.
There are several initiatives from a host of printing industry participants that range from office and commercial printing equipment manufacturers, third-party supplies manufacturers, and paper mills to commercial printing establishments. Millions of inkjet and toner cartridges have been collected for remanufacturing or recycling. OEMs are now focused on reducing energy consumption in both manufacturing processes and when printing equipment is running. Healthy debates are happening over the topics of recycling, remanufacturing, and manufacturing processes. Investments in reforestation are happening. These are just some examples of how the industry has reacted.
So, does this mean mission accomplished? Not by a long shot.
However, it does show is the industry is increasingly taking the issue seriously. The shift to being a more sustainable industry is a process. It takes a substantial investment from industry stakeholders, and the transition to being a more environmentally friendly industry will take time.
If one looks at the energy market as a corollary, the war in the Ukraine has shown that the transition from fossil fuels will also take time and trillions of dollars of investment in alternative energy sources, just as the development of the oil & gas industry required vast sums of investment. This does not mean the investment isn’t worth it or feasible. Rather, it highlights that the printing industry (like many others) is still on that journey.
The investment in dialog, technology, and innovation puts the industry on a road to a more sustainable future. Moreover, if the industry stays focused on forging a new path, this journey will produce positive change and a new paradigm for growth. And, in the process, Mother Nature will benefit from a helping hand that she so desperately needs.
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